Saving the World  This Time For Real
by jades113
Summary: Max is out to save the world - again. But is this the mission she's been waiting for, the one that'll save or end the world 4ever? All her former enemies have joined together. Takes place after Fang n continues Fang-Max-Dylan situation. Better than sounds
1. Intro

_Fang,_

_If you think I am waiting twenty years for your sorry butt, I fear that your head has inflated a trifle too much. Meet me in the spot you mentioned, but in five years. You can't deny that that's long enough. What the heck were you thinking,_ twenty years_? We'll be 35 and_ old_. The flock sure as heck won't need me that long. Angel will be twelve in five years. I was twelve when I started taking care of all five of you. Plus, all the scientists seem to think the end of the world is happening sooner, rather than later. Who knows if that place will still be there in twenty years? And I will need your help to save the world. So five years, maximum. Maybe less. _

_Just so you know, the only reason I haven't tracked you down and killed you yet is because you're right. The flock does need me to lead them. For now. But I would rather have you be here with flock and me and force myself to just be your friend than to not have you here at all. Know that. And if you change your mind, find me. Oh, but one more thing. You know what you DIDN'T do, you sorry bastard? You DIDN'T DELETE FANGSTUFF off the laptop! So, thank you, thank you very much. You know I just_ love_ getting my heart broken twice. _

_But anyway, something you said on there, that I had the hots for Dylan...? Are you _insane_? You really think so? Well, I've got a news flash for you: you're _dead_ wrong. And if you hook up with another girl in these five years, you will be in serious trouble and I will cheerfully beat you to death. Of course, next time I see you, I will kick your butt anyway for leaving. So that's all. Notice I didn't say any mushy and tearful goodbyes or proclaim my love or anything. Know why that is? I fully intend to see you again. You better not die. I _will_ see you again. (And if you do die, I will bring you back and kill you again.)_

_~Max_

_PS. If your expiration date or mine shows up, expect a visit from me. I _refuse_ to die before I kick your butt and chew you out for breaking your promise._

I sighed, typed "THIS IS FROM MAX SO READ IT NOW" in the subject bar, and pushed send. A thought suddenly crossed my mind - what if Fang had changed his email? Was he _that_ opposed to hearing from me? Okay, he probably wouldn't have changed it. But perhaps he didn't go on his email right away? Or it got lost among the who-knows-how-many fan emails? Well, there was nothing I could do about it except hope that he got it and read it. And maybe send it a few more times over the course of like, a month.

I sighed again - I had been doing that a lot lately. Life seemed so dull, so meaningless without Fang near. And I'd been so depressed all the time. Which was really not like me.

I heard a soft knock on the door.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Can I come in?" Dylan. Ugh. He hadn't left me alone since had Fang left, trying to comfort me any way he could. It was annoying. But, actually, I was kind of impressed with him, too. I'd expected him to gloat a little and try to make the moves on me, but he really hadn't been romantic towards me at all. He was just trying to be the friend I desperately needed. It was still annoying.

"Whatever."

He opened the door and sat down on my bed.

"So. How are you?" he asked, concern written on his face. I quickly ran my finger under my eye to wipe out the tear trying to escape.

"I'm fine. What's up?"

"Are you sure you're fine?" Ugh. When was he gonna learn that I am NOT the mushy-gushy 'let's-talk-about-_feelings_' kind of gal?

"I'm _fine_ Dylan. What do you want?"

Okay, I admit that I felt a tiny bit bad when I saw the hurt pool in his turquoise eyes. But not enough to apologize. For one thing, I don't apologize. Ever. For another, when would he get it through his _thick skull_ that I really wasn't interested in him - not just as in a romantic relationship, but _I was not interested in becoming his friend either_. There were only five people - seven if you include my mom and Ella - that I needed in this world, and he would never be one of them. He could NOT replace the one of these seven that is currently AWOL.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Max. I just - well - I saw you almost crying so I wanted to help."

Ugh. Another annoying thing about Dylan is that he can see the future. Not in a long-term sense, but up to like, two minutes beforehand. It had started out only being a couple of seconds before something happened, but it seemed his little skill was becoming more advanced. And annoying.

"First of all, I was _not_ crying. And second of all... I really don't need comforting, Dylan. Because I'm fine. And even if I wasn't fine, you trying to comfort me really doesn't help. You are a big part of why Fang left. And that hurts." Ugh. Did I mention how much I hate talking about feelings? Well, I do. Especially to Dylan.

"I'm sorry, Max. He was putting you - and the entire flock - in danger."

"Oh, like we haven't been in danger before. Like_ I_ haven't put the whole flock in danger before. Heck, I'm probably putting you all in danger now, just without realizing it. We know how to handle ourselves. And he wasn't putting anyone in danger, anyway. Angel's little prediction already came through. Fang _was_ the first to die - technically. So now we don't have to worry anymore."

"You don't know that that was what it meant."

I stared at him. I could read nothing but careful sincerity.

"Shut up! You don't know anything! You-"

"Max?" I spun to see Angel in the open doorway.

"_What_?" I snarled.

"He didn't mean anything bad by it. But I have some - news."

The grave look on her face mad my blood run cold.

"What sort of news?"

"Well... Jeb is here. And he says we all need to leave. Now. Before it's too late."

I stood up.

"What do you mean, 'before it's too late'? Too late for what? What the heck does Jeb know?"

But I walked quickly out the door anyway, without waiting for an answer. Angel and Dylan followed me closely. I could almost feel the tension rolling off Dylan; he trusted Jeb and took anything he said to be the truth instantly. Another reason I found Dylan so insufferably annoying.

Nudge, Iggy, and Gazzy were already outside talking to Jeb when I got there.

"Max!" Jeb exulted, "Max, you all need to leave."

"Why?" I asked and crossed my arms. I, unlike Dylan, did _not_ trust Jeb, not one little bit, and never would again.

"Your lives - all your lives - are in worse danger than they've ever been."

**Author's Note: Please Review! I'm sorry that this is so short, but I'm still sorting out ideas for this story and the above is my definite beginning. **


	2. The Debriefing

"You all need to leave. Now. Don't even tell me where you're going. Don't ask questions, there's no time. You just need to get as far away from here as possible. Do _not_ expose yourselves anywhere. Blend in with the humans as well as you can. I mean it Max, your lives depend on secrecy. They're more compromised now than they ever have been before." Jeb spoke urgently and expectantly, as if he expected me to yell 'OH NO!' then jump up and run away screaming, 'Not our_ lives_! We gotta get otta here!' I thought he knew me better.

"_Of course_ they are. And I'm Queen Elizabeth. Didn't you know that?" I retorted.

**_Max. This is serious. _**

Oh how_ great_. Th_e _Voice was back. This day just kept getting better and better.

Okay, truth be told, though I much preferred my head to be private - most of the time - I was a tiny bit glad to hear from the Voice again. It had been completely gone since before Fang had left. Hearing the voice sort of made the edges of that huge gaping hole in my heart, my chest, my life (this hole had appeared and started to grow as soon as I'd seen Fang's note on the dresser) a little bit less painful. Before, it had felt as though the edges of this giant wound were constantly festering, burning, and eating away more of me - now it was like the Voice had put some lotion on it and the pain had been reduced to a deep, constant ache.

Wow. I had some SERIOUS abandonment issues.

_How nice of you join us, Voice._ I thought sarcastically.

"Max," Jeb said, "I know you don't trust me, but - "

"Damn right, I don't trust you. What did you expect to happen when you shared your little news? Me to go off obediently and run from this 'danger'? Oh _please_."

He ignored me.

"I know you don't trust me, but right now you need to put the past behind you."

"Okay, Jeb. What kind of_ imminent danger _are we talking about anyway?" I asked this conversationally, as if I'd merely asked about the weather. I knew it would annoy Jeb - and _ha!_ I was right; I could see it in his expression.

"Let's just say that there is now a united army of the world's most powerful people intent on killing you. Well, not just you - the entire flock - but mostly you - and - and - Dylan." He was skipping over something - a name - someone. I had a pretty good idea of the name he didn't want to mention.

"They will try to pick you off one by one if they can - so do _not_ separate from each other. Stay together at all times. Actually, maybe you should all split up. You'd be less noticable, less recognizable. No. Just stay together. Change your appearances if you can. This is too much Max, even for you. You need to go into hiding."

My heart was pounding too loudly. Fang was on his own - if someone was trying to pick us off one at a time, especially him... But no. I wouldn't worry. For one thing, Fang could take care of himself. For another, Jeb was probably overreacting. Or lying. Or trying to test us, or something.

Then again, I'd never really seen Jeb hesitate when it came to throwing me into potential peril.

"So why do these hypothetically powerful people want to kill us so badly? And what happened to saving the world? And why do you care what happens to us anyway?" I asked, keeping my voice deceptively calm.

"They think that you are a threat. They believe that if the wrong person got their hands on you, the results would be horrifying. These people don't even believe that you should be preserved, studied, or guarded. They don't want to use you themselves. They won't kidnap you and bring you somewhere so that you might be briefly studied or experimented on before death. They will kill you outright. How many times have you been kidnapped? How many times have you been shot at? These people will not momentarily spare you. They will kill you the moment they get the chance."

"Oh _come on_. People do_ not_ pose a threat to us," I scoffed.

"People with guns do," Nudge said quietly.

"Yes," Jeb continued, "People with guns _do_ pose a threat to you. But these are not merely people with guns. They have Erasers. And, on top of that, they have invented a new enemy for you, one that's bigger and more dangerous than you have seen before."

"Who are these people, anyway?" Iggy asked indignantly.

"They are the world's richest people and most influencial politicians. They are the Director of Itex, Omega, and the rest of Itex's remaining forces. They are the leftover scientists from the School and the Institute. They are Mr. Chu and Dr. HG. They are the people who watched the fight between you and Omega back in Germany. They are the people the Uber-Director tried to sell you to."

"Uh-huh. And you expect us to believe that _all_ these people are now best-of-chums and are all united solely for the purpose of killing us? Not to rule the world, or anything, but just to kill us. And I thought Dr. HG really wanted to experiment on us...?"

"They may not all get along, but they all agree that you all need to be eliminated. You're too much of a threat. Really, none of these people want the others to get their hands on you."

**_Max. You're wasting time._**

"One more question. Why are you warning us? Where is my mom? And how do you know all this?"

"That's more than one question. I'm warning you because _I care about you_. I know you don't believe it, but I do. Your mom is fine, she's home. And no, I do not believe she will be kidnapped to create a trap. The relationship between you and her isn't all that widely known. And I know all this, Max, because I am supposed to be a part of it. _I am supposed to kill you_."

Well, that was enough information for me.

I turned to my flock, purposely looking past Dylan.

"Alright guys, let's get out of here. I still am not totally sold on Jeb's story, but I say we leave, just in case. Everybody, grab a backpack, and the essentials. Grab an extra pair of clothes too; if we happen to get dirty or bloody, well, I don't think that attire would blend well. Let's go."

We all scrambled into the house. I filled my backpack up with food, the laptop, the remaining money, and a change of clothes. By the time I reached the door, everyone but Nudge was waiting and ready to go. Jeb was still outside.

"Hurry. What are you waiting for? They will be here soon!" he said, exasperated.

"Nudge. And just what are you going to tell them?"

"That you were already gone when I got here."

"Ah. I see."

Luckily, I didn't have to say any more; Nudge caught up with us just then. Not that I would have said anything more, anyway.

"Ciao," I told him carelessly and then started to move past him.

"I hope that this makes you see that I really do care about you," he called as I continued. But I stopped and turned around.

"That because you _didn't kill me_, you care about me? Whatever Jeb. Whatever."

And we were off.


	3. Deciding

In what seemed like less than a second we had all snapped our wings out and were soaring far away from our safe house.

**_Max. Maybe flying isn't such a great idea. _**

_Shut up, Voice._ I thought back at it.

**_These would-be assasins - they will be looking for six flying kids. The air will be scoured. They'll expect you to fly. They don't know that you've had a warning. You need to blend._**

_So I see that you believe Jeb. _

The Voice was silent. Of course.

"So, Max... is there a plan?" Nudge asked.

"There's always a plan," I answered automatically.

She rolled her eyes.

"I _meant,_ do you know what this plan is?"

No. I didn't.

"Sure I do."

"I think we should go to Chicago," Dylan spoke up.

"What? Why?" I asked. I immediately decided that the plan was NOT going to involve Chicago.

"It just seems like a huge city would be the place to blend."

"We've tried that. Even New York City wasn't big enough to hide us," Iggy said.

Ugh! If only Fang were here! I could ask him what he thought; we could debate and argue ideas... he could share some of the burden of being the leader. I'd come to depend on that little benefit more than I thought without even realizing it. This leading was harder than it should have been.

"Iggy's right. But I think Dylan is right too. We need somewhere big enough to blend, but not big enough to be obvious," Nudge said.

Nudge. She'd grown up so much in the last few months. She really wasn't a kid anymore. I knew she'd rather be back home, on the computer. I knew that she _hated_ being on the run. Yet I hadn't heard one complaint from her.

"What do you mean, 'obvious'?" Iggy asked.

"I mean like, somewhere nobody would guess we'd go. New York City, Miami, Las Vegas, Chicago - they're all to famous. These people will assume that we'd go somewhere like that. To Disney World, or someplace else fun. Someplace, like, that would be the obvious place to go."

"You're right, Nudge," I said, "Anybody else have any ideas?" Might as well ask.

"Well," Gazzy started, "_I _think it would be awesome if we went to Texas."

"Texas?" Iggy asked.

"Yeah! And we could meet actual cowboys and go to a ranch!"

"That would be cool! I've always sort of liked the cowgirl look," Nudge enthused, getting a faraway look in her eye.

"Lots of room for testing new bombs. I mean, it's so big and _empty_. It's perfect," Iggy mused.

"Yeah!" Gazzy exclaimed. He exchanged a high-five with Iggy.

Yeah. That would be wonderful. And _Texas_. Texas with it's scorpions and rattlesnakes and... No. We were _not _going to Texas. Of that much I was certain.

"Hmmm. We'll see. Angel? You've been awfully quiet." I looked back at Angel who didn't seem to be paying any attention to the conversation.

"Angel?"

_We need to warn Fang._

She pushed the thought into my head and I jumped. You'd think I'd be used to my head being invaded by now. (I know; weird sentence.) I guess I was just surprised since she wasn't looking at me when she did it.

_He doesn't know about this. And if they find him... It's my fault he's not with us. It's my fault he doesn't know. And it'll be my fault if something happens to him._

_It's not your fault. _I thought back bitterly. This talk of Fang had set the good ol' hole to festering again. I refrained from clutching at my sides in an attempt to prevent my organs from spilling out and falling far below, only to grusomely decorate a bit of ground for the next passer-by.

_He left of his own free will. But I agree that he needs to be warned._

I saw Angel nod almost imperceptively from the corner of my eye.

"Ugh. You guys are talking in your heads aren't you? I hate that! It's not like I can read your body language!" Iggy snorted.

I looked up. The others were all staring at us.

"Yeah. Sorry," I answered, "Angel wasn't really thinking about where to go. And I don't really want to go to Texas."

Gazzy's and Nudge's faces fell. Iggy looked slightly disappointed. Dylan gave me an approving look. One I really didn't want to see.

We flew in silence for a very few minutes.

"How about Milan, Italy?" Nudge asked suddenly, "It's the fashion capital of the world, you know."

"Nuge, everybody knows about your obsession with fashion. If it really is the fashion capital, that would be 'too obvious', like you said," I dissuaded her gently.

Her face fell slightly again.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Dang. That would have been amazing."

"I still think we should go to Chicago," Dylan put in.

"And I don't think so," I answered icily.

"_I_ still want to go to a ranch and meet cowboys," Gazzy said determinedly. Maybe I shouldn't have let him watch so many westerns lately.

"I have an idea," Iggy said, "Gazzy wants to meet cowboys so bad. And it gave me an idea. What if, instead of cowboys, you met farmers? I mean, really who in the world would think to look for us on a farm?"

"That's true," I said hesitantly, "But farming really isn't my thing. Any of ours. And there are lots of other options."

"But that's exactly the point! Who, in their right mind, would ever think to look on a farm?" Iggy said.

"He has a good point... but I agree with Max. I mean, I can do dirt, I can do blood, I do battles, and I can even do school. But smelly cows and their poop? No thanks."

"Oh, come on! It would be awesome!" Gazzy exclaimed.

I reserved judgement on _that_.

_I think you should let me go find Fang. On my own._

I spun around to look at Angel, shocked. (Just a word to the wise; spinning suddenly while remaining airborne is no easy feat.)

_What? _I thought back.

_I made this mess - I know you don't think so, Max, but I did. It's my job to clean it up. I need to warn Fang. Besides, I know that if I could just know where he was, I could get a message to him. I don't know how far I fling thoughts. But even to try, I need to know where he is. I need to find him._


	4. NOTE!

Hey, Jade here.

I'd like to apologize for not updating my stories - in some cases - for years. I really appreciate all the support that you've given me on this website! The reason I haven't updated in ages is because I've been working on my own stories (for fun; they're not based off of any other story premise) and busy traveling. I actually started a travel blog, so if you're interested in reading SOMETHING by me - even if it's my boring non-fiction, feel free to check it out and give me suggestions! I love feedback!

travelwithjade

Thanks so much!

Love,

Jade


End file.
